


Reconciliation

by shieldivarius



Series: Femslash Yuletide 2014 [6]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/F, Femslash Yuletide, Prompt: Reconciliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-06
Updated: 2014-12-06
Packaged: 2018-03-03 14:37:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2854409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shieldivarius/pseuds/shieldivarius
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Melinda makes some inroads to a better relationship with her mom, a few weeks to Christmas (and no thanks to Natasha).</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reconciliation

**Author's Note:**

> All of the Melinda/Natasha stories in this year's Femslash Yuletide are in the same universe and chronological unless stated otherwise!

Melinda tapped the tip of her pen on the notepad lying across her desk. _Tap. Tap. Tap._ The dull sound echoed in her head a split second after it reached her ears— _t-tap-t-tap-t-tap_ —eventually driving her to force her hand still, before the repeated noise drove her to break something, self-inflicted or not. 

Her mother wanted her home for Christmas. She hadn’t been home for Christmas in ten years. Somehow— _somehow_ —she’d found out about the tree, about Natasha, about the whole lot of it. That was the only reason Melinda could think of for her to have sent an invitation out of nowhere. Maybe there was a camera in one of the ornaments she’d left for Melinda.

Maybe she was being ridiculous. It had, after all, been ten years and ten years was a long time to go without spending a major holiday with family. Really, Melinda had no reason _not_ to go. Except that she had gotten herself embroiled in an ongoing work situation with her involvement with the Advent Gang—as Natasha had started calling them privately—and if they didn’t catch the ringleader by Christmas, Melinda had no doubt they’d be spending Christmas Day working, and interrupt any plans that she tried to make anyway.

So she could RSVP to Christmas and get out at the last minute, thus ensuring her mother _never_ invited her to another family holiday event again.

Or she could turn down the invitation and bring her mother’s wrath down upon her, probably in the form of an actual physical visit.

The latter was probably the better option. Appease her mother with a gift for her trouble and get out of going home for Christmas. 

Both options felt incredibly disingenuous. 

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

She glared down at the offending pen, dropped it to the desk, and picked up the phone.

 

“My mom’s coming for dinner Saturday night. You’re invited.”

“Excuse me?”

Melinda looked up from her book and over at Natasha, who was curled up on the other end of the couch, eyebrows raised so high they hid beneath her bangs. 

“You’d like my mother,” she said, and returned to her book. 

Natasha’s fingers appeared on the page in front of her and pressed down, forcing the book from Melinda’s hand. “No,” she said, voice flat and disinterested and hiding anything she might possibly be feeling.

And then in an instant Melinda was alone in her apartment and the front door slammed.

“Coward,” Melinda remarked to the empty apartment.

 

Saturday night arrived. 

Melinda’s one-bedroom felt small with her mother in it. Certainly smaller than it ever felt when Natasha—the only other company she ever seemed to have—was around. She didn’t spend too much time unpacking that. She hadn’t meant it in any serious capacity when she’d invited Natasha to join them for dinner, and anyway, Natasha’s showing up would’ve made the apartment feel more crowded, not less. 

Ten years. Not since she’d last seen her mother—of course not—but since she’d last seen her mother at this time of year, three weeks to Christmas, and with her little decorated tree sitting in the corner and suggesting that Melinda herself had returned to some form of celebrating, anyway. 

Mom hadn’t commented on the tree, not aloud, but she’d given it a long, long look upon entering and had slowly transferred that look to Melinda. There’d been a knowing glint in her eyes as she handed Melinda the wrapped dish she’d brought.

“So you’re not coming for Christmas,” Mom said, taking a sip of her wine and looking critically across the room at Melinda.

“I already told you that work’s going to get in the way.”

“You could try.”

“Mom.”

She received an unrelenting frown in return, and Melinda sighed and pulled a wrapped package from under the coffee table. She handed it across the couch. “Merry Christmas,” she said. 

Her mom smiled. “Thank you.”

 _‘For trying,’_ implied the tone. Melinda let it go.

**Author's Note:**

> http://shieldivarius.tumblr.com


End file.
